also i guess if you do still care abt what label s.thing is on are pay special attn which ones do you care abt?

It very much depends. I think that I pay a lot less attention to record labels these days, because there are so many other forms of gatekeepers to weed out music I might like. And this isn’t even just things like Spotify or YouTube where I can go to listen to an artist—I never buy music “blind” at all any more*—but more about just being in contact with so many more music fans through th’interweb, that “Poster A and Poster B both rep for this album” is a way more reliable recommendation for a record than “It’s on Label A” ever was.

*I have tried to think of the last time I bought a record unheard—and realised that this is one of those exceptions to the rule that makes my answer a “maybe” rather than a straight no. I will buy stuff unheard on Finders Keepers and/or Anatolian Invasion, pretty much unheard.

No blind purchasing anymore here either. BUT I do seek out listening to stuff on certain labels. And it’s good to buy stuff and support some of those labels that are doing really really good stuff consistently.

Yeah, what others have said. Every so often I’ll hit Spotify and check out what’s recent on Spectrum Spools/NNF/DFA/Ghost Box/Hyperdub/Woodsist. I’ll also blindly buy anything that Analog Africa puts out and I’ll at least keep track of more scattergun reissue labels like Numero, Soul Jazz, Strut, Finders Keepers, and Sublime Frequencies. The main role of labels for me is one of curation; of all the records that get put out, being on a label I care for is one way of making me aware that a particular record exists and maybe I should give it a listen.

Yeah, long gone are the days when I would wander into Selectadisc and buy something purely on the basis that it was in the “Space Rock” section and had an interesting cover. I think I probably care about labels as much as I ever did, though. There are a small number of them that I will try to buy as much from as possible; a slightly larger number I’ll keep an eye on, take as an indicator of the worth of a release, endorse to my friends; an even larger number that will shore up an initial interest in a record... And yeah, there are local labels and DIY people out there that I’ll always have a look at and try to support if they’re doing worthwhile things.

Obviously it is a lot easier for bands to complete bypass the process of signing to a label, or even working with one, and a lot of people don’t “buy records” in the same way that they used to, but I find it useful to look to labels to provide an aesthetic context, and also simply because it’s still difficult for bands to afford a physical release on their own.

Yeah, long gone are the days when I would wander into Selectadisc and buy something purely on the basis that it was in the “Space Rock” section and had an interesting cover.

ha ha, yes, I have bought so many ~terrible~ records this way! Granted, yes, also the occasional rare amazing record. But it was so hit and miss. And that just makes me think more than ever that the great album-buying days of the 20th Century were just such a classic economic bubble.

they can be helpful esp in dance music but i still don’t really care about them, or at least i resent having to look up the labels when i submit my pazz & jop form and having to work out which subsidiary it was released on

in underground metal labels are still very much an identity thing. NWN, Hell’s Headbangers, Bestial Burst, Werewolf Records—these are all labels whose imprint signifies an aesthetic. At least two of them are probably nazis tho which sucks

I still care about them a lot; I’m just too disconnected these days to use them as a useful barometer. For example, right now I would buy anything on BPitch Control blind and would need to hear anything on Night Slugs before buying.

So in theory I care, but I rarely put that caring into practice these days, if that makes any sense.

Yeah there’s certain labels I’m willing to take a blind punt on. Profoundlore Records release so much good stuff (though I dont buy any of the DM releases)

I’ll buy Numero Group stuff blind, but I’ll pretty play every single promo I get from Mego, Type, Southern Lord, Ipecac, Thrill Jockey, Profound Lore, Load and Hydra Head

oh and Finders Keepers I’ll buy blind too

Kranky is the only label I follow, but they have a pretty set aesthetic that I like

don’t think i ever cared about this tbh

i think i just like the idea of owning sets of things, so i end up buying stuff from labels i like a lot simply because i want to have that continuity. like the uninterrupted run of #s, the consistency of the packaging and presentation are impt to me

i also find its a good way for me to hear new things, or stuff that i wouldnt otherwise hear

<pvmic> i regularly buy stuff from friends’ labels whose tastes coincide with mine </pvmic> Outside of that, I respond favorably and will buy blind from bargain bins records on Skin Graft, ESP, Important, Cuneiform, and FMP (there are probably a few others I’m forgetting)

^^ oh and Lovely Music

These days I operate under the principle of “If I find it in the CD dollar bin in Amoeba and it’s on a label I’ve heard of and like I’ll give it a go.”

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interested in what labels you check out regularly lamp

I’m always blindly buying records largely based on what label and what year, or an interesting cover. Right now I’m buying anything on the Pulsar label, though the catalog is small. I’m still filling in blanks in Takoma, ESP, Black jazz, Stax, Light’s custom, and so many others. Many labels used certain studio musicians and that’s how I find most of the music I like. Granted I haven’t bought music made after the 80’s in a few years so.

I’m interested in hearing anything on Finders Keepers, Soul Jazz, Thrill Jockey, Southern Lord, Profound Lore, Editions Mego, Ipecac, Rise Above, Southern/Latitudes, Fysisk Format.

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